birra بيرة
Algerian Darja · noun
“birra” (بيرة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning beer.
Meanings
- beer
- alcoholic drink (by extension)
Usage
Birra refers to beer, and sometimes alcohol more broadly. For a bottle, one says qar3et birra, and for a can, kanet birra. The subject is socially sensitive: it is rarely discussed in front of family, and the word can be used to disparage someone who drinks. The term is common in spoken language, without being vulgar. It should not be confused with bir, "the well", nor with biru, "the office", borrowed from French. The plural is little used; people rather count bottles.
Example
ما يشربش البيرة، يشرب غير القازوز.
ma yechrabch lbirra, yechrab ghir lgazouz.
“He doesn't drink beer, he only drinks soda.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “birra” but also “bira” and “biira”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “birra” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “beer”: bira in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “beer”; “brewer's yeast (khmira birra)”: birra in Tunisian.